Going Back
by TooManyHobbiesToList123
Summary: It's been three months since the gangs been recued. But something feels wrong... I know it says Jackson Melissa, but really it's about all of them
1. A First Thought

_Disclaimer: I do not own Flight 29 Down or any of its characters._

**Melissa's POV **

_The clear blue sky reminded me of that gorgeous day that my friends and I had been rescued from the island. The air was crisp and a light wind was blowing. It flew through the trees, making the leaves dance. We were near the beach so I could smell that familiar salty sea air. How my skin craved to touch the warm sand, my muscles flexed, ready to carry wood for a roaring fire. My nose demanded to smell the earthy smell of the jungle, and my taste buds screamed for flavorless fish and tropical fruit. Yes, I missed the island, and I'm sure the others did too._

"Mel? You okay?" Cody Jacksons' voice interrupted my train of reminiscence.

"What? Oh yeah, I'm good…" My voice trailed off as I looked in the direction of the beach gazing at the empty sky that stretching on miles without a trace of buildings, or smoke.

"What are you looking at?" He asked inching closer to me on the park bench where we sat.

"Oh…just at the sky…" I replied, my mind still on the island.

"Mel I know you better then that. You miss the island, don't you?" Jackson questioned sliding his arm around me and pulling me closer to him.

"What? No…I'm glad to be back…I missed L.A"

"Mel, it's been three months. I miss it too, but what can we do? Jump on a plane and get lost in a storm?"

Melissa Wu forced a laugh. "No, I know that's not possible…but I wish we could at least see the island."

Jackson just smiled and whispered "me too" before leaning in to kiss me.

I let my mind wander while this exchange occurred and thought back to our first kiss.

_*Flashback* _

_A week after we had been recued, Taylor had thrown a welcome home party for all of us. We all danced and chatted happily about our week home. Everything was going well until Jackson asked _Abby _to dance. _Abby! _I remember him telling me that he liked me, so why would he ask Abby to dance? She wasn't scary anymore, but…I was expecting him to ask me. I watched as Jackson led Abby onto the dance floor and put his arms around her waist. That pushed me over the edge. I got up and walked out onto the patio where Lex and Ian were talking about some show they both liked. _

"_Mel! Hey" Ian grinned at me_

"_Hey Ian! How are you feeling?" I asked, purposely faking happiness._

"_Oh, loads better. For once it felt good to get a needle. Normally I detest them."_

_I laughed and sat down between him and Lex. We talked for the next five or so minutes until we heard the patio door slide open behind us._

"_Mel?" Jackson called my name. _

_I wasn't _mad _at Jackson, so I had no right to be rude to him. I wasn't mad, but I was hurt. But I didn't let him know that._

"_Yeah?" I asked cheerfully._

"_Do…you want…to dance?" _

"_I thought you were dancing with Abby?" _

"_Yeah, to a song I know you don't like. Didn't you hear the start off piano?"_

_Oops. _

"_Oh…no I was distracted…Um yeah…I'd like to dance." _

_I got up, waved goodbye to Ian and Lex (who smiled at me) and followed Jackson back inside. _

_As we started dancing away from the rest of the group, I caught Jackson gazing into my eyes in a way he had never done before. I gazed back._

"_Mel…" he whispered but didn't get a chance to finish because I had stood on my tip-toes and had touched my lips to his. I heard a distant clapping and a "finally!" from Eric in the background but didn't pay attention because Jackson had started to get really into the kiss and he was all I could think about. _

_*Flashback end*_

**Jackson's POV**

I walked Melissa back to her house which was not far from the park we had just been at. As we reached her street, I turned to her and told her that I couldn't walk her to the front door as usual, and had to leave her here.

"Oh, Did I do something?" she asked.

"No, no…I just have to run an errand for my new foster-mom. It's my first week and I want to make a good impression and not be late. I'm sorry"

Melissa smiled and kissed my cheek.

"It's okay, good luck!" she said pulling her hand away from mine and heading down her street. I watched her go up until the third house from hers then turned and walked further away from the park, an idea forming in my head. I felt myself smile, and turned the corner onto Nathans street. Eager to ask him about it.


	2. So it began

_Disclaimer: I do not own Flight 29 Down or any of its characters._

**Nathans POV**

I lay on my soft bed, starting up at the white ceiling.

_Three months to this day. I could still remember the feeling of joy that had shot through my veins when the rescue planes landed on the island. The terror I had felt when Captain Russel had come back and was about to burn down our half built shelter. I recalled my conversation with Daley._

_"Am I crazy?" I had asked._

_"No, why?" she had replied._

_"I'm not ready to leave..." _

_I still wasn't ready. I missed the warm sandy beach, the sound of the waves crashing onto the rocks. I could still hear the tropical birds when I woke up every morning. Am I crazy? Am I the only one who wants to go back?_

A triple knock on the front door brought me back to reality. I rolled off the bed and onto the floor, rubbing my eyes.

_Darn those door-to-door salesmen. How many times do we have to tell them we don't want to buy their vaccum that also mops?! _

I headed down the stairs and towards the door, ready to tell whoever it was off. I opened it and was about to politely refuse whatever gadget I was about to be offered, when I saw Jackson.

"Good morning sleepy head." Jackson said eyeing my appearance. I hadn't looked in a mirror for hours and had no idea what I looked like. _Probably like I just woke up_

"Hey Jackson...Come on in." I said stepping back and letting my best friend in.

"Thanks." He said as he walked past me. He'd been over so often since we arrived home I didn't need to tell him where my room was. He started making his way up the stairs two at a time. I closed the door and followed him up.

"So what's up?" I asked as I entered my room. He was already situated on my bed. Staring out the window.

"Nathan, I need your help."

He sounded serious, so I grabbed my computer chair and leaned in, ready to talk.

"Shoot."

**Jacksons POV**

I took a deep breath and let out my concern for Melissa.

"She keeps looking at the ocean Nathan. She misses the island. I hate seeing her upset. She seems distracted lately, as if her mind was still on the sandy beach..." I finished with a deep breath.

"I miss the island to Jackson, and I know Daley does because when we went to the beach last weekend she started collecting the sea-weed that had washed up on shore. I had to stop and tell her if she wanted sushi she could walk over to the sushi bar. But what can we do?"

"Well, I do have an idea..." I started but was cut off by a loud barking outside.

Nathan hurried over to the open window and looked down onto the street.

"ERIC! GET YOUR DOG OFF MY LAWN! IF MY MOM SEES IT SHE'L HAVE A COW!" he shouted.

"SORRY! I COULDN'T CONTROL HIM!" Eric shouted back.

I couldn't stand to hear the two of them fight again, so I covered my ears.

I watched the muted scene as Nathan shouted something back, and then closed the window and went back to his chair.

When I knew it was safe, I brought my hands away from my ears and into my lap.

Before I could say anything, Eric came strolling into the room whistling.

"Did you tie your dog to a tree so he doesn't go on my moms precious lawn?" Nathan asked.

Eric nodded as he slumped down onto a bean bag chair.

"So what's this about?" Eric asked looking at me.

I was taken back and shot a confused look at Nathan, who explained that he had told Eric my situation.

"So what are you planning chief?"

"I was thinking...maybe we could go back. Just for the weekend. All of us. Except, the Captain ofcourse."

"No way am I going anywhere with that maniac!" Eric exclaimed, shuddering at the memories.

"But if the Captain doesn't go, how will we get there?" Nathan inquired.

"Well...Since they're not going to open a resort on the island due to the constant storms, I was thinking we could go on our own." I replied.

"Yeah, but how? Last time I checked we all can't swim that far. Otherwise we would've been back a week after we crashed." Eric pointed out.

"Well then we take a plane. My foster dad can fly one."

"Yeah! That sounds great." Nathan said smiling. "I'll bet Taylor even misses it." He said, smirking at Eric.

Eric pretended not to notice the smirk. "Nah. She's already forgotten about it. Actually I wouldn't know. We don't talk about it much. So I assumed she's forgotten. But she might want to go back. I remember her telling me on our way home that she liked lying on the beach."

"Well Jackson? What are you waiting for? Get your dad on the phone!"

I was to busy dialing to respond to the fact that Nathan had called Martin my real dad. That and, I was a little happy that he had.


	3. The Plan

_Disclaimer: I do not own Flight 29 Down or any of its characters._

**Erics POV**

"Yeah, mhm. Okay. Only 10 people. Okay. Thanks!" Jackson said as he hung up.

"So what's the deal chief?"

"Martin said we could go any weekend next month."

"Sounds good." I replied leaning back.

"Wait...now that it's starting to get official, I'm starting to realize, this could be dangerous. I mean, we don't want to get stranded on another island do we?" There goes Nathan, bring up the bad sides as usual.

"Eh, no worries!" I assured him. "Remember? I'm charmed." I said popping my collar.

"Yeah, he's right Nathan-"

"I am?!"

"Martin is an excellent navigator. Definetly better then Captain I-can't-fly-a-plane-for-my-life Russel. Anyone heard about him lately?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Nathan replied, starting to relax.

"Sure, believe him." I said rolling my eyes. "And as for the captain, he's still in the hospital."

Nathan and Jackson looked at me with looks of surprise.

"What? I know my fair share of information..."

Nathan shook his head and smiled. "Moving on, what weekend do you want to go?"

"Well, I was hoping we could go on Mel's birthday - the 23rd. We could throw her a surprise party on the 22nd, make it seem like that's all we have planned because of something else happening on Saturday. Meanwhile we'll fill her parents in and then I'll pick her up on her birthday. And next thing ya know, we're flying towards the island once again!"

"Yeah, only this time we'll know where we're going." I snorted.

Jackson couldn't hide his smile.

"And I'll fill Daley in on this later, who can tell Lex. What about you?"

"Me?" I looked up at him.

"Yeah, how are you going to get Taylor to go? I know she liked the beaches but there are tons of those here."

"Oh. Getting her to that island? That'll be easy. Taylors into me."

Nathan rolled his eyes and looked at Jackson, who was looking at me with a weird look on his face.

"What!?" I asked, "Taylor's into me. There's no denying the facts."

"No, I believed you on that. You seem like her type...I was looking at you because I didn't expect you to want to go so badly." Jackson said, twiddling his thumbs.

"Oh...well you know. I have emotions to. And hey - as long as it's only for the weekend, I can take it like a vacation."

---

**Nathan's POV**

"So Daley, what do you think?" I asked as I finished telling her the plan Jackson, Eric and I had formed.

"Going back to the island, but as a vacation this time?"

"Yeah! Doesn't it sound fun? You do miss the island don't you?"

"Yeah, I do. You should know that from that trip the to beach...but I dunno...doesn't it sound a bit risky?"

"I thought so too. But Martins' great. So I hear."

Daley sat beside me on the red couch, thinking about the possibilty.

"Sure Nathan. I'd love to go back."

---

**Taylor's POV**

_I let the sun soak into my skin as I lay on the warm beach towel. The salty air doing a wonder for my skin. My hair blowing in the breeze. I could hear the distant sounds of the rest of the group preparing dinner when I felt water fall onto me. _

I jumped out of my memory of the island just as Eric squirted water onto me.

"Hey." He said sitting down next to me at the sushi bar at the beach.

"Eric! You got water on my new top." I scolded him for his mistake and grabbed a handful of napkins and started dabbing at the delicate material.

"Sorry...here let me help."

"Fat chance!" I said slapping his hand away. "Now what do you want? Can't you see I'm waiting for my oyster sushi?"

"Oyster sushi eh? Sounds familiar."

"Yes, it does." I said nonchalantly as I smoothed out the wrinkles in my halter top. _God Eric! Now you made it all scrunchy..._

"I wonder where I've had - and nearly died from - oysters before? Hmm...are you..missing the island?!" He accused.

"What!?" I gasped. "No!" I lied.

I couldn't risk letting the truth out about how Taylor Hagan missed the island she had been stranded on for 28 days. I shuddered to myself.

"Yes, yes you do! I can see it in you eyes."

I looked around to make sure no one from school was in the restaurant, when I saw only one old couple sitting at the other end of the bar, I turned to Eric.

"Fine! I do miss it okay?" I hissed. "But tell anyone and you're dead. I'm back on top baby, and I could crush your social life as you know it." I shot him a vicious look and turned to the plate of oysters that had arrived.

"Okay then...But I just came to tell you that we're taking a vacation to the island next month for Melissas's birthday."

I looked up from my sushi.

"Really?"

"Yup. And everyone - except the Captain - is going! I'll pick you up that day. Okay?" Eric said. Before I could reply, he kissed my cheek and left.

---

**Lex's POV**

When Daley told me we were going back to the island, I was overjoyed. _I get to see my garden! And maybe even Ms. Speckles! _Was the first thought that had popped into my head. I smiled at the thought of seeing my beloved chicken again and didn't dare eat the dinner my mom had made that night. Choosing to eat the side dishes only.

At dinner, me and Daley had brought up the idea for the vacation to our parents. We carefully explained that we would be with a responsible adult who wouldn't get us lost in any storms, and who knew how to get to the island safely. After much consideration and whispered conversations, our parents had agreed to let us go.

A few days later, I walked into Daleys room to find her organizing her bookshelf.

"Oh hey Lex." She said when she saw me.

I didn't reply. Instead I walked over to her neatly made bed and sat down.

"Lex, you okay?"

I shook my head.

"What's wrong?" she asked putting a stack of poetry books down and walking towards me.

"It's about Ian, Abby and Jory Day."

"What about them?"

"Do they know about the trip?"

Daley nodded. "Yeah, Nathan and Jackson probably filled them in..."

"And what about Abby?"

"What about her?"

"If we see my chicken...she won't try to hurt her, will she?"

Daley shook her head.

"Abby's been treated Lex. She's back to her normal _vegan _self."

I smiled and nodded. "I hope so. Hey, do you want to know my favorite part about going back other then seeing my chicken?"

"What?" Daley asked.

"I get to see my garden!"

And with that I grinned, jumped off the bed and ran to my room.

---

**Narrator's POV**

Jackson was thrilled when he told Melissa about her party on the 22nd and she believed him about everyone else having other plans on her birthday.

"But, I don't have plans. So I asked if it was okay with your parents and they said I can take you for the day."

Melissa's eyes lit up. "That'd be great Jackson!" She grinned and hugged Jackson. "Thank you..." she whispered right by his ear.

"Your welcome Mel." He replied hugging her tighter. "I'll be right back." He said after a minute or so. He slowly pulled out of the hug and kissed Melissa's forehead.

He turned and walked towards the public mens bathroom in the mall. Inside he met Nathan and Eric.

"So, how'd it go with everybody?" He asked looking around.

"Well Daley, Lex, Ian and I can go." Nathan informed.

"Yeah, so can Taylor, Jory and me." Eric said leaning against the white brick wall.

"Great! Because Abby, Melissa and I can go too."

"That's everybody!" Nathan said clapping his hands together.

"Look's like our work here is done." Eric said and started to head out.

"Hey wait. We still need to do Melissa's birthday party."

"Oh right...We'll sing happy birthday and give her a cake." Eric mumbled.

"Nah, you can't do that when she's turning sixteen! You need more than that.." Jackson insisted.

"Fine then chief. Throw her a ballroom party and sign my name on the card, because I sure as hell can't afford to pay." Eric emptied his pockets for emphasis. All that came out was some lint and a gum wrapper.

"Guys, we don't need to do something _that _big and elegant. No fancy parties! The island is her gift. Maybe we can...just have a normal party with all the castaways?"

"Sure. Whatever works for you chief." Eric said shrugging.

"Yeah I'm good with that." Nathan nodded.

"Can we go now? I can smell the fast food and it's making my mouth water!" Eric whined.

"How can you smell anything through this thick cloud of bathroom fumes?"

"I have an excellent nose. Now can we please go?" Eric begged.

"Yeah sure whatever...I have to meet Daley either way."

"Yeah and Melissa's probably starting to think I died from the smell in here." The boys silently laughed. Spending a month on an island with three girls definetly taught them there were some smells that didn't burn your eyes out.

"What about you Eric? Is Taylor waiting for you, or were you rejected?"

"For your information, I wasn't rejected. I'm simply working on it." He said and walked out.

**This is my favorite chapter so far, mostly because I mention Lex (YAY LEX!) but also because of the forming relationship with Eric and Taylor. Please review! :)**


	4. Melissa's Birthday party

_Disclaimer: I do not own Flight 29 Down or any of its characters. The songs belong to their rightful owners. _

**By the way, this is taking place in 2009. I know that doesn't follow the time line in the show, but you'll see why through out the party. **

**ONE MONTH LATER**

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY MELISSA!" The group shouted when Melissa entered Nathan's house.

"Thanks everybody!" She smiled and hugged Taylor who had run up to her and thrown her arms around her neck.

Jackson smiled and closed the door and followed the sound of the party.

When he entered the open space he saw Melissa covered in party hats and confetti. There were streamers hung on her arms and a variety of hula necklaces around her neck.

"Wow they got to you fast." Jackson smiled and kissed her cheek.

"I know, I couldn't do anything about it." She smiled and kissed him back.

"Okay you two! Break it up. It's time for the games!" Taylor cheered and brought out a stack of group games such as Twister, DDR and Charades. Eric followed her carrying a big boom box.

"Aren't your parents going to be distrubed by all the noise?" Melissa asked looking at Nathan.

"Nope. They left the whole house to us for like..the whole day. As long as we all stay safe."

An awkward silence followed his words until Lex cleared his throat and suggest they start with DDR.

"Sounds good." The group mumbled, glad to be getting away from the previous topic.

"Ian, can you dance alright on your leg?" Daley asked looking to Ian and Jory who were seated on the couch.

"Yup! I can dance just like I could before the trip."

"Meaning...?" Nathan inquired.

"He was the number one dancer at his camp last summer, and don't you remember, he won the dance contest last spring!" Jory answered proudly.

A chorus of "No ways!" "That's so cool!" and "Oh yeah!" 's filled the room.

Ian grinned and thanked everyone.

"I'll get this set up." Lex offered taking the box from Taylor.

"Thanks Lex!" Eric says putting the boom box down and taking the remaining boxes from Taylor. She smiles at him and he blushes as he sets them down on the coffee table.

"We should move this out of the way." Jackson suggested. He and Nathan each picked up a side of the table and Eric removed the games.

"Where do you want to put it?" Jackson asked Nathan.

"Right over there." He gestured towards the corner and the two moved it. Thanks to the island they had built up a lot of strength and lifting the table was quite easy. Eric followed them with the games and set them down when they were done.

"Okay! It's ready." Lex called.

"Great job Lex!" Daley said. Nathan came and stood beside her put his arm around her shoulders. Jackson did the same with Melissa, Jory and Ian, Abby went and hugged Lex. Now only Taylor and Eric were left without anybody. Eric slowly came and stood beside Taylor and reached down and lightly took her hand. She didn't resist.

"Who's first?" Lex asked breaking away from Abby.

"I'll go." Jackson volunteered.

Melissa smiled. "Jackson has the same dance rep as Ian, only he won the dance contest at his old school every year." She whispered to Nathan. Jory overheard and encouraged Ian to go up as well.

"Okay." Ian said and they both stood on the mats, ready to begin.

"You guys ready?" Lex asked.

"Yeah Lex."

"I'm putting the songs on shuffle, okay?"

"Sure buddy!"

Lex hit play and Lady Gaga's Just Dance blasted through the speakers.

Ian and Jackson both were amazing dancers and both added their own upper body movements to the mix.

The group not dancing watched in amazement as Jackson pulled off a flip and Ian started to break dance. They laughed and cheered on their friends. Eric, Taylor, Jory and Abby cheered for Ian while Nathan, Daley, Lex and Melissa rooted for Jackson.

"Come on Ian! You can do better than that!" Jackson shouted and Ian instantly picked up his skills and raised his score 50 points.

"I know I can, but can you?" He challenged Jackson as the next song started.

The two continued to dance until the last song started and and Lex called out whoever has the highest score in the final round wins.

"No problem!" Jackson and Ian shouted together over the loud begining of Let It Rock by Kevin Rudolf.

The group cheered and chanted along with the song. Singing the chorus extra loud.

"Ten bucks on Ian!" Eric called out.

"No way! Totally Jackson!" Nathan challenged.

"Deal!"

"WELL YOU'LL GET WHATS YOURS I GOT MINE. BECAUSE WHEN I ARRIVE, I I BRING THE FIRE MAKE YOU COME ALIVE."

Melissa laughed and when Jackson heard he put even more effort into it.

The song started to come to an end and each of them threw in one last array of fast dance moves and just as the song ended, Jackson was declared the winner.

"Good game buddy!" Jackson said shaking Ians hand. The two collapsed on the couch, too tired to move.

"Pay up!" Nathan said to Eric, who grumpily pulled out ten dollars and handed it to Nathan.

"Aww come on! We still have Charades and Twister!" Taylor cried.

The two boys groaned.

"Okay, you guys sit out. We'll play these."

The games continued for atleast three hours until Nathan whispered something to Daley,

"Melissa close your eyes!" She instructed.

"Okay..." She said and buried her head in her hands.

There was shushing and someone left the room and came back a few minutes later.

"Okay, open!"

Melissa opened her eyes to see a beautifully decorated cake in front of her eyes.

"Happy Birthday!" Everyone cheered as blew out the candeles and cut the cake.

"Open wide!" She said putting a piece to Jackson's mouth. But instead of feeding him, she smeared it all over his face.

He didn't respond at first, just smiled and took a piece of cake himself.

"You're going to pay for that." He warned.

"OO I'm so scared!" Melissa laughed and took off in the opposite direction.

Jackson chased her and smeared cake all over her face as well.

The others didn't hesitate to join in.

The party lasted until ten at night and they wanted it to last longer but Nathan's parents came home.

"We'll clean up then go." Taylor said and started pulling streamers down from the ceiling.

"Melissa do you want to throw your decorations out?" Nathan asked eyeing the mess of decorations on Melissa.

She shook her head. "I want to see what my parents say."

The group laughed and finished cleaning up.

"I'll give you a ride home Melissa." Jackson offered.

"Thanks!" She replied.

"Come on Ian." Jory said and the two left together.

"Lex!" Daley called and Lex came back from the kitchen holding a small silver box.

"I almost forgot." He said handing it to Melissa.

"Lex...you didn't have to do this..."

"Yes. I did. Happy Birthday Melissa!" He smiled as she opened it and gasped.

"Lex! It's beautiful. Thank you!" She said hugging him. She tied the bracelet around her wrist with the help of Daley and left with Jackson, Daley and Lex.

"Bye Nathan!" Daley smiled and kissed him on the cheek.

"Thanks for the party!" Melissa shouted back.

"Your welcome!"

**Reviews are never mandatory, but always greatly appreciated. :)**


	5. The big day

**Sorry it took long to update!**

**WOODLAWNIAN: I'll work on that. **

_Disclaimer: I do not own Flight 29 Down or any of its characters. _

The next morning Melissa woke to the annoying beeping of her alarm clock. Although it was a Saturday, she had wanted to wake up early so that she could spend the day with Jackson.

She got out of bed and went to the bathroom to take a shower.

She emerged ten minutes later, a cloud of steam following her. She went downstairs and threw her pajamas in the laundry and started to make herself eggs for breakfast.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY MELISSA!" Her mom and dad appeared holding a box wrapped with pictures of tropical islands from magazines. Melissa sighed. _I wish I could go back..._

"Thanks mom and dad! I'll open it when I get home tonight." Her parents nodded and looked at each other knowingly.

"What...?"

"Ooh...Nothing. Here I'll make your breakfast!" Her mom said, taking the frying pan from her.

"Thanks mom." Melissa sat down at a table and poured herself some orange juice.

Her mom set the eggs down infront of her and she began to eat.

When she had finished eating, she heard a honk outside and went to look. Jackson was waiting in his foster moms car. She threw open the door, yelled to her parents she'll be home later, and darted out the door.

"Happy birthday!" Jackson smiled and kissed her when she got in the car.

She smiled. "Thanks."

"So, where do you want to go?"

Melissa shrugged. "Anywhere works for me."

Jackson nodded, replying to a text message and drove off.

Five minutes later, Nathan, Daley, and Taylor arrived at Melissa's house and jumped out of Nathan's car.

"We have three hours Jackson said!" Nathan called and the three ran up the path to the front door.

Taylor rang the doorbell and Melissa's parents opened it.

"Hi guys! Melissa's room is upstairs and second door on your right."

"Thanks Mrs. Wu!" Daley said and the three of them darted upstairs and burst into her clean room.

"Okay, you guys pack the personal stuff, and I'll grab some jeans and shirts." Nathan instructed, pulling Melissa's pack out from behind the door.

Daley nodded and she and Taylor opened a drawer on Melissa's chester and began pulling things out and threw them into a bag and then buried the bag into the pack.

"I'll go grab her canteen." Daley said and ran down the stairs.

"I'll..." Taylor looked around, not knowing what to do next.

**"**Get her sleeping bag?" Nathan suggested, folding jeans and t-shirts and putting them into the pack.

"Right..." Taylor left the room and passed Daley on the stairs.

"Hey, how's it going?"

"Same as it was a minute ago." Taylor replied and kept going.

"What's the deal with Taylor?" Daley asked, returning to the room and handing Nathan the canteen.

"I don't know...But I think after she grabs the sleeping bag we're done."

"Okay, great."

They both headed down the stairs and found Taylor digging through a closet.

"Taylor!"

"What?!"

"If you don't know where the bag is, ASK!"

"Oh, right." She went into the den where Melissa's parents were watching the news and asked where the sleeping bag was.

"Top shelf, third door from the front door." Her mother answered. "Oh, and take this too." She handed Taylor Melissa's birthday present.

"Thank you." She went back to the other two and handed Nathan the box.

"What's this?"

Taylor shrugged. "Gift from her parents."

Nathan nodded and packed that as well.

Taylor opened the closet next to the other one she had just searched through.

"Here." She handed it to Nathan and closed the door.

Daley was putting the contents of the other closet back in, so Taylor bent down to help.

When they were done, and Nathan had zipped the pack shut, they said good bye to Melissa's parents and left.

---

"Nice day at the park..." Melissa's voice trailed off as she looked towards the beach again.

"Yeah." Jackson agreed and answered another text. "But, there's another surprise waiting for you." He said standing up.

"Ooo." Melissa stood up and followed Jackson back to the car.

"But, you have to wear this blind fold." Jackson said when they were both seated. He handed her a black simple blind fold.

"Oh no, you're not going to kill me, are you?"

Jackson laughed. "No. Put it on."

"Okay..." She pulled it over her eyes and felt Jackson start the car.

"Where are we going?"

"You'll see."

"Actually, I won't"

Jackson laughed. "Eventually. You will."

He drove to the empty parking lot where Martin had landed the small plane. He got out of the car and helped Melissa.

"Okay, Melissa, you're going to be climbing stairs, okay? They're big enough for both of us to go at the same time. When I say step, step. Okay?"

Melissa nodded and felt Jackson take her hand and lead her over to the stairs.

"Step. Step. Step." Jackson said 'step' about fifteen more times until Melissa felt cool air touch her skin.

"Okay, come this way." Jackson said, leading her to her seat.

A man in a truck came by and pushed the stairs out of the way.

Martin hit a button and the door closed.

Melissa sat down and Jackson counted to three on his fingers.

At three, Martin started the plane and soared into the sky and the group of friends shouted "HAPPY BIRTHDAY MELISSA!"

Melissa ripped the blindfold off and gasped when she saw where she was.

"Where-what-"

"The island." Eric replied simply and everyone watched a huge smile appear on Melissa's face.

**Reviews are never mandatory, but always greatly appreciated. :)**


	6. Arrival

**Sorry it took long to update! Not a big fan of this story myself, so I try to put it off... But then the guilt sets in! Short chapter, just for the sake of an update.**

**Beware of Dogs: Not big on fluff miself! But sometimes it must be done. Now we're moving on!  
****Sweet Blooded Vampire Girl****: It might take a little long to continue, but I will keep trying my best!  
****HPANDLOTRrocks****: One, I love your PenName because it is SO true. Two, thank you!**

They flew for what seemed like a few minutes, but turns out it was actually several hours. They talked about their adventures on the island, the dangers they had faced, and the mysteries that still lay there. When the small speck that was the island came into view, it was deja-vu all over again. They faked a crash, and with a lurch landed on the white sand.

"Alright Jackson! I'll see you Monday night!" Martin called after they had pulled their gear out of the helicopter.

"Thanks Martin!"

They stood back and watched the helicopted take off into the sky again, and then started trudging towards their old campsite.

"So chief. What's first?" Eric asked grinning.

"Ha. I'm not leader, remember? It's all Daley." Jackson grinned and everyone looked to Daley, who froze.

"Um... Well I guess we're going to need water since we didn't bring it this time, we just got the bottles... And fruit and fish..."

"Oh yeah, I definetly missed _that _diet!" Eric groaned.

"Hey, just do it. And be grateful you'll be eating normal breakfast come Tuesday." Taylor said, dropping her pack at the mouth of the old beat up plane, that surpirsingly had survived the hurricane.

"Yes ma'am!"

The group broke apart and set off to build their dinner and beds. Jackson stayed with Melissa, who was pitching a single tent.

"All this, for my birthday?" She asked, sticking a pole into the ground.

Jackson shrugged. "Yeah. Happy birthday Mel." He grinned and pulled her in for a hug.

**Reviews are never mandatory, but are always greatly appreciated. :)**


	7. Happy Birthday Melissa

**Sorry it took long to update! Not a big fan of this story myself, so I try to put it off... But then the guilt sets in! Short chapter, just for the sake of an update.**

**WOODLAWNIAN: No, this isn't a prequel to A FaithFul Reunion, seeing how Eric likes Taylor, and if it was then the party scene wouldn't make sense, since the music is present day, and A Faithful Reunion is set in present as well. :)**

For the rest of the day, everyone was off doing their own thing, since survival was not that big of a thing on their lists, they actually spent the day relaxing on the beach, and talking about anything and everything.

"Finally! What this whole trip was supposed to be!" Eric exclaimed falling down beside Taylor on a beach towel.

"I know... I was getting so sick of following Daleys orders..." Taylor said, her eyes were closed and her faces was tilted towards the sun.

"Hm, uh-huh, right. That's why you softened up a little around the middle of that month?" Eric teased.

"That, was different. Jackson liked Melissa because she was nice."

Erics heart sank.

"Oh, you still like Jackson?"

Taylor's eyes remained closed, and she shrugged. "He's with Melissa now, but I did date a little when we got back home..."

Eric pretended this didn't bother him and lay beside her, watching the clouds.

"Hey you two! Watch out!" A voice called.

"Now what?" Taylor groaned. She sat up and looked around when a splash of cool water hit her back.

"ACK! NATHAN!"

"Haha come on! It was fun!"

"ERIC!" Taylor shrieked.

Eric laughed and scrambled up from his own towel and ran back to the campsite, returning seconds later with his own water bottle.

"WATER FIGHT!" He shouted and he and Nathan started squirting each other while Taylor calmly dried herself.

She wiped the last few drops off when more came and hit her.

"NATHAN!"

"Wasn't me!" Nathan was quick to defend himself.

"Then who was it?" She asked, glaring at Eric. But his bottle lay a few feet away from him, empty.

More water fell onto her and she screamed and jumped.

"Come on Taylor! Join in!" Abby laughed, and ducked just as Ian and Jory fired more water in her direction.

"Hey, what's going on he-ahh!" The front of Daley's shirt was soaked by Nathan, who laughed and ran back to the campsite.

He found Lex checking on Ms. Speckles, Melissa stroking the fire, and Jackson cleaning some fish.

"Hey you guys! Come on, you're missing all the fun!" He said to them. He grabbed two water jugs and ran back to the beach.

"What do you think that's all about?" Jackson asked, raising an eyebrow, setting down the camp knife.

"I dunno. Let's go find out!" Lex said eagerly and Melissa and Jackson followed him back to the beach.

The second they stepped onto the beach however, they were instantly soaked by all seven of the others.

"Oh you asked for it!" Jackson laughed and ran and tackled Eric to the ground, laughing. Daley threw Melissa a water bottle and she ran and attacked Nathan, who ran and hid behind Taylor. Which, didn't do much at all.

Hours must've passed, because the next thing they knew Daley was asking if they were hungry, and if they should set up dinner.

Dinner that night was exactly what everyone had expected it to be. Although, it was quite different enjoying the meal with Jory, Ian and Abby there. Well, maybe not Abby so much since they'd eaten with her before, but Ian and Jory made their dinner quite enjoyable.

"So, since we had to go back to living on the island for the weekend..." Lex started and everyone looked at him, curious to see what he was going to say next.

"I wanted to make Melissa a birthday cake. I hope you don't mind though..." He said and pulled a lump out of a box.

"Um, junior?"

"Yeah Eric?"

"That's not a cake! That's... That's a salad stuck together!"

Lex shrugged and passed it to Melissa who looked down at it, grinning.

"Well sorry _Eric _but I don't recall planting icing seeds and flour. Those are some of the vegetables we grew before we were rescued. There's corn, tomatoes, potatoes... I had a hard time sticking them together, but I managed to by cooking them in that form. Not sure how it really happened but..." He shrugged and looked at Melissa hopefully.

"Aww Lex! It's great. Thank you so much." She smiled, set the veggie cake down and hugged Lex.

"How are we gonna cut it?" Daley asked, looking at the marvel of colors. "We don't exactly have cuttlery."

Melissa shrugged. "Why not just pass it around and eat the veggies we want?"

The others agreed to this idea, and twenty minutes later all that was left were a few ends of the veggies.

"That was great Lex!" Melissa smiled and hugged him again.

"So, presents?" Jackson suggested looking around at them.

"What? I thought the island _was _the present..."

"Well we thought so too, but Jackson made us- I mean no not at all!" Eric said, catching Jackson's stare.

Everyone started pulling out brightly wrapped boxes.

"No, you guys-"

"You're getting presents!" They said laughing and each of them handed her their presents.

It was different than what she expected. Daley and Taylor had given her drawing tools, Abby and Jory gave her a necklace that greatly resembeled the one she had left in the plane, Lex a book of poetry (which received some snide remarks from Eric, but Melissa loved it all the same) and Ian, Eric, Nathan and Jackson had pulled together a painting of Melissa.

"How did you-?" She gasped, looking at the amazing portrait.

Jackson grinned. "My foster mom."

Melissa grinned back at him and hugged him.

"Thank's everyone. Really... You didn't have to do this." She said hugging each of them in turn.

"You kidding? Mel, if you hadn't been on the island, we would've had a harder time getting through it. You're an angel Mel." Nathan said, grinning.

Melissa blushed as everyone agreed.

"To Melissa!" Lex said, holding up his cocount shell cup.

"To Melissa!" The others echoed.

After dinner, everyone seemed to disperse back around the beach and campsite, and went on doing what they wished.

Melissa sat with her back against her favorite tree, and looked out at the vast ocean. This time, it was not fear or worry that sunk into her veins at the sigh of a ship-free horizon, but pure joy. She heard someone come up behind her and turned to see Jackson, leaning against a tree smiling.

"Hey." She smiled.

"Hey." He said and sat down beside her and followed her gaze to the ocean.

"You know, I didn't give you my enitre present." He said quietly, after making sure no one was around.

"Jackson! You really don't have to-"

But she was silenced as Jackson started to kiss her, gently at first but deepening it.

They broke apart ten minutes later, each gasping for breath, and glad to be in each others company.

"Happy Birthday Melissa." He breathed and kissed her again, much lighter this time.

**Reviews are never mandatory, but are always greatly appreciated. :)**


	8. Into the water

**Sorry it took long to update! Not a big fan of this story myself, so I try to put it off... But then the guilt sets in! Short chapter, just for the sake of an update.**

Melissa woke up on the warm sand, a feeling she had missed dearly."

"Morning sleepy head!" Lex called.

"Hey Lex! Am I the last one up?"

"Nah, Eric is still knocked out." He said, sitting beside Melissa.

Melissa chuckled. "Can't blame him. That was an awesome thing you guys did for me last night."

Lex smiled. "It's no biggie. You'd do the same for us."

Melissa nodded. "Course I would."

"Daley said breakfast is in ten minutes if you're hungry."

"Starved. Any veggie-cake left?"

Lex shook his head. "Sorry."

"Nah, we'll do it old style. Fruit and Fish."

"Ohhh Fruit and Fish! Delicious." Eric's voice came through the trees, and next second he had bounded through the trees, ripped his shirt off and jumped into the ocean.

"He's crazy!" Melissa laughed.

"He's not the only one." Lex said.

"What?" Melissa asked, but her question was answered when Ian, Nathan and Jackson all came running onto the beach and followed Eric's lead.

"GUYS! WE NEED YOU TO COLLECT FIREWOOD!" Daley shouted.

"CHILL DALEY! This time we're on VACATION!" Eric shouted back.

Melissa and Lex chuckled. "Same as old times."

"Hey Daley! We can help out!"

"Thanks Lex!"

"Let's get going..." Melissa said. "How did I not get washed away by the tide?"

"It doesn't come up this high, remember?"

"Oh, right."

**Reviews are never mandatory, but are always greatly appreciated. :) Sorry for short chapter**


	9. We'd Better

**Hullo all… I'm on an updating rampage. Funny, because it's almost 2:30 in the morning and this is the last thing I thought I'd find myself doing…**

After Melissa and Lex had finished gathering firewood, the guys came back from their morning swim.

"That was refreshing." Nathan said, sitting down next to the fire.

"Chyeah…" Eric nodded and took off his cap. "I hate to admit it, but it feels good to be back…" He said looking up at the blue sky.

"Yeah, you say that now because you don't actually have to do any work because your survival doesn't depend on it." Daley remarked.

Jackson chuckled.

"What's so funny chief?"

Jackson shrugged. "Where are Taylor, Jory and Abby?" He asked looking around.

"Abby and Jory are picking fruit and as usual, I have no idea where Taylor is."

"I'll go find her!" Eric said and took off, running towards the beach. He had barely left, when he was back again. He bent down and grabbed a water bottle out of the cooler.

"What do you need that for?" Melissa asked suspiciously.

Eric shrugged. "Old times sake." He grinned and ran off again.

Ian rolled his eyes. "Man, I feel really sorry for you guys."

"Why's that?" Lex asked.

"You had to live with that for 28 days? How'd you do it?"

Daley laughed. "Lord knows!"

---

"Abby… Do you get the feeling we're being watched?" Jory whispered, looking over her shoulder.

"C'mon Jor, we've been all over this island. There's nothing here but animals and currently 9 kids." Abby assured her friend, reaching up and picking a bunch of bananas.

"So you think it's an animal watching us?" Jory asked, stumbling over the bumpy ground as she followed Abby back to the campsite.

"Probably just a bird. Trust me Jor, we're the only humans on this island."

They entered the campsite and dumped the fruit on the sand beside the fire. Jackson was boiling water, Nathan was cleaning fish, Lex was reading a book and Ian was cracking coconuts.

"Hey guys." Jackson said, looking up at the two of them.

"Hey."

"Hi." Jory said nervously.

Jackson looked at Jory questionably.

"She thinks there's someone else on this island with us." Abby explained.

Jackson chuckled. "Don't worry Jory, the island was searched after we were rescued. Nothing but animals, fruits, plants and a million bugs."

Jory nodded. "I know…. But I just felt like I was being watched-"

"Mrs. Speckles!" Lex cried suddenly, standing up. The group followed his gaze, and indeed Mrs. Speckles had made her way through the jungle to the campsite.

"Did she lay any eggs?!" Nathan asked, standing up.

"I found your watcher." Jackson smiled.

Jory grinned in relief.

"I don't think it matters if she had lain any eggs… We're leaving tomorrow, remember?"

"Oh yeah…" Nathan said, looking into the distance. "Feels really weird though. None of the things we're doing right now really matter…"

"That's why I'm not doing any of it." Eric sneered, coming into the scene. "Daley's down at the beach telling Taylor to charge the solar batteries and Melissa's collecting seaweed. Honestly, can't they just wait?"

"I'm sure Daley's just worried we won't be back again tomorrow." Nathan said. "She just wants to make sure everything goes alright just incase anything happens and we don't get back home tomorrow-"

"Don't say that!" Eric snapped, his eyes wide. "We'd better get home, or I might just swim."

**Reviews are never mandatory, but always greatly appreciated. :)**


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